I was having my morning coffee, minding my own business, when I was disturbed by a pod of dolfin feeding next to the boat. I got my camera out but every time I snapped a picture, the darn things went under. I tell you it ain't easy.
It is 7:30 AM. I am having my coffee in the cockpit. It is cloudy with a mild NW wind. The roosters are crowing and all seems right with the world. Well maybe if Pippin would stop barking and scaring people. Pippin is a wolflike beast who was left here by some cruisers who are now elsewhere. Since Donny is away, Mr. Smith feeds him but he remains outdoors and barks at all hours.
Anyway, it is cool but not enough to warrent long pants. Debby and Russ flew in yesterday and the local ferry delivered them to their little (24 foot) boat. Florrie and I had been helping Ripple put up their masts and were having celebratory cocktails with Tom and Jan when they arrived. After a few rums it was getting quite chilly as the sun went down so we went back to Harmony and tried to stay awake until 9 (sailors midntght).
Arrived 2 days ago after a 29 hours trip from Vero Beach. Tired but happy to be "home". A really good crossing with Windspirit (Sue and Charles). Florrie has sold somebof her work at a local gift shop.
Man plans and the gods laugh. We were all set to leave Vero today, stop at Nettles Island to see some friends tonight and go to West Palm on Sunday and leave for the Bahamas on Monday. However, I listened to Chris Parker this morning on the SSB (single sideband radio...short wave) who reported that there will be a cold front developing on Monday with squall winds up to 40 knots (35 knots is the lower limits of a GALE). Not a good thing to be caught with, especially in the middle of the gulf stream, and I would prefer to stay on a mooring at Vero than be anchored in the West Palm anchorage. Oh well. Maybe we will leave on Tuesday. This is not a plan, mind you...only a goal.
We are now sitting at the Vero Beach City Marina, on a mooring, planning (can you hear the gods laughing?!) to leave from Lake Worth for the Bahamas on Sunday the 16th. It took us 11 weeks to get here from Norfolk because of the weather. It has been a cold, rainy passage which started November 2nd, arriving on Thanksgiving Day in St. Augustine. If we had written for the blog all these weeks, it would have been a constant litany of complaints about the cold, punctuated by a few sentences about terrific people we've met, the beauty of the ICW, the marshes, birds and dolphins.
We still have a little provisioning to do, prescriptions to get from the local CVS and our dinghy motor to get back from the mechanic. It is having its annual maintenance check-up. Florrie is also hoping to have time to walk over to the art museum - one of her favorites.
As always (except for the cold which kept us in triple layers of clothing, even as we slept sometimes) the sights have been lovely. We enjoy the Dismal Swamp and the cypress swamps of the Waccamaw River. Elizabeth City was home for four days while we waited for Albemarle Sound to calm down. That's where we met Capt Kal. and Brian of "Serenity". We're hoping to see them again in Marsh Harbour, soon.
Staying on the dock of the Riverside Marina in St. Augustine for six weeks, we got to know Pam, Max, Patrick, many local people and some other boaters. It is not a hardship to be "stuck" in such a friendly, fascinating, historic place. Kathy & Jim of "Dilligaf" explored the town with us until they took off for Nettles Island. Merrie, an adventurous boater, is another person we hope to see again sometime, somewhere. One of the hardest parts of this life style is that we make friends easily - then have to say good bye much too soon. Sometimes we manage to stay in touch and that is always a treat. May it be so this year, too.
Lew got the canvas and isinglass in the cockpit repaired, a new auto helm and even replaced the old furling line while Florrie went home for two weeks in early December to see family. "Harmony" is just about as ready for her fourth passage to the Bahamas as she can be.
Florrie now has a few of her most popular prints in Expressions, a gift shop in St. Augustine on Spanish St., behind the Old School House. You can also see some of her Bahamas works on FineArtAmerica.com under the name of Florence Bramley Hill. (More will be added in the spring.)
Our entries into the Blog may be sporadic, we have no idea what the internet is going to be like in the Bahamas. We understand that there have been many changes in the service since we left in the spring. However, we are looking forward to being back at Green Turtle Cay and having Jim, Sarah & Riley for a week in the Abacos! We hope you all are having a good start to this New Year and are not having to shovel too much snow.
It is like coming home. Arrived yesterday, got the dink ready (read blown up) and headed for the showers. Ahhhhh.
